ADVERTORIAL

ANC asks black farmers for tips on how to distribute land

The ANC has asked a black farmers' association to assist the state identify deserving beneficiaries of land expropriation without compensation.

The party met with the African Farmers' Association of SA (Afasa), which represents black farmers, on Wednesday in Kempton Park, Ekurhuleni.

ANC deputy secretary general Jessie Duarte said Afasa was advanced in terms of who should benefit from land expropriation without compensation policy.

"The ANC is doing public participation. We like what Afasa is saying. They are quite advanced," Duarte said.

'It's criminal to leave vast tracts of land unused'‚ says Jessie DuarteANC deputy secretary-general Jessie Duarte said on Wednesday it was criminal that vast tracts of land had been left unused in South Africa.

ANC head of national executive committee's subcommittee on economic transformation, Enoch Godongwana, said the party had not yet clearly defined who the beneficiaries of land expropriation should be. Afasa on the other hand said black farmworkers, youth and women must be prioritised.

The farmers also raised concerns on crime and land grabs. Afasa president Vuyo Mahlati bemoaned the ANC's failure in implementation despite coming up with good policies.

The ANC used the meeting to also clarify how its position on land differed to that of the EFF, which wants all land to be transferred to the state's custodianship.

"We're saying we are going to expropriate land for the purpose of redistribution," said Godongwana.

"If we want the land for housing development, we are going to expropriate land and build houses for the people," he said.

Duarte said government has spent over R50-billion on land redistribution. "Much of that land was not used productively and was sold back to the established farmers," she said. The Citizen- The Sowetan -BY NGWAKO MODJADJI